


The Shadows That Follow You

by ZanzaFlux



Series: Shadows of the Studio [2]
Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-24
Updated: 2017-10-29
Packaged: 2019-01-22 12:05:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12481184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZanzaFlux/pseuds/ZanzaFlux
Summary: Bendy was sad to leave the place he called home but had very little choice.  Besides,  home was where the people who cared about you were.  Right?





	1. Coming Home

**Author's Note:**

> This story takes place right after Shadows of Things to Come and is apart of the Ink! Henry AU created by @shinyzango and @themarginalartist on tumblr. Their stories and artwork inspired me.

The first thing Henry did the next day was go to work and put in for his vacation days. His excuse being that he needed time to recover from something that happened months ago. He wouldn’t go into details and it seemed he didn’t have to. His coworkers were just happy he was getting help. They couldn’t see the pentagram in his hand because he made sure of that, but they could see how dark the veins in his hands and arms were. They could tell how quieter he had gotten too. If taking some time off will help, they were more than happy to grant him that. 

The next thing Henry tried to do was clean up the drying puddles of ink in his garage. Just the thought that those things tracked him down to his own home made him angry. Bendy offered to help but Henry didn’t want him near any of the acetone he was using to clean the floors and walls. By the time he was done, he got most of the ink stains up. There were still traces and marks here and there, but it wasn’t as bad as before. 

June, for her part, was still a little afraid to enter the garage. Even after Henry assured her it was clean, she still remember being cornered by that creature. Truthfully, she wanted to be on the road as soon as possible, but she knew Henry had some loose ends to tie up. Patience wasn’t her strong suit, but she would try for her brother and the little toon's sake. 

Speaking of toon:  Bendy was walking through his home. He felt bad that they had to leave. He knew it wouldn’t be forever, but it sure felt like it. He walked through each room to make sure he didn’t forget anything. Soon he found himself in the garage. Henry did a good job of cleaning things up even though the faint smell of acetone was still in the air. He sighed softly and headed back to the door when something dripped on his shoulder. It was ink! He looked up to see a splotch of ink on the ceiling. It was cold and it made his skin crawl. He swiped at his shoulder furiously to get it off and quickly left the garage. Maybe it was time for them to get out of there. 

Bendy made his way to the front of the house where Henry was throwing some bags into the trunk of June's car. They decided to take her car and the siblings would take turns driving. Bendy didn’t have much to be honest but then again he didn’t need a lot. He made sure he packed the teddy bear he won at a state fair and a few books he owned and he was good. 

“You guys ready to go?” June questioned her brother and the little toon. Bendy gave her a big grin and a “thumbs up!”. Henry just nodded before taking one more look at his home. June walked up to him and leaned against his side. 

“It’s going to be alright. We'll figure things out. I promise.” She took his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. Henry looked over at her and gave her a warm smile. “I know sis. C'mon, let’s get out of here. I’ll take the first shift. I wanna get out of this state without getting a ticket.” 

June laughed and slapped Henry on the arm. “Just don’t drive like an old man, okay?” He scowled playfully and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. He hugged her and lead her to the car. Bendy was standing near the back door with a huge grin on his face. It was nice seeing a playful side to his friend. Who would have thought having his sister around could do that. 

They all hopped into June's car and they were on their way. Bendy saw some of the neighborhood kids playing outside and he waved to them. They called out to him and waved back. He will miss them, but he knows he’ll be back. Besides, he was on his way to making some new friends and that always made him happy. 

A few hours into the trip found the little group singing to a few tunes on the radio or Bendy and June playing ‘I Spy'. In spite of the circumstances of them leaving, Henry was actually enjoying himself. June had drifted off to sleep listening to the toon point out various things he seen on the side of the road. Henry let her since she would be taking over in a few hours. 

Four hours later, they found themselves at a rest stop. Henry made sure the car was gassed up before they got a bite to eat at a small diner nearby. The place wasn’t crowded, quite cozy, and the staff was friendly. Very few people gave Bendy a second look. Henry was grateful for that. They ordered three ham on ryes and three bottles of pop. June and Henry spent most of the meal laughing and trying to answer some of Bendy’s questions. It was rather nice. 

When they were done, they settled the bill, left a tip, and piled back into the car. It was June’s turn to drive. Good thing too. She turned to a soft jazz station and within an hour both man and toon were out like a light. The past couple of days were stressful and she figured they needed the rest. She didn’t mind. If she could help just a little bit, she was happy to do so. 

The sun was just setting and the street lights were flickering on by the time June turned down the road that lead to her home. She smiled as she pulled into her driveway. She could see the lights on the first floor. Looks like someone was home. Well, time to wake up the sleeping beauties. 

June reached over and shook her brother’s shoulder lightly. “We’re here bro.” She looked to the back seat and chuckled. The little toon was curled onto his side and snoring lightly. She reached back and ran her fingers against one of his horns. A lazy smile spread across his face and he sighed softly. June just shook her head before playfully poking the toon in the cheek. “C’mon, up and at'em!” 

There were a chorus of groans as Henry and Bendy finally opened their eyes. The little toon demon was the first to notice they weren’t moving anymore. 

“Are were here?” June smiled and pointed out the window. Bendy jumped up and pressed his gloved hands and face against the back window. They were parked next to a large farm house with a huge front yard and a beautiful flower bed by the steps. 

Henry noticed a big red rig parked on the side of the house. “Looks like Jason’s home.” June reached out and ruffled her fingers between the toon’s horns. “Looks like you’re in luck! You’ll get to meet everyone at once.” 

They all exited the car and grabbed their bags out of the trunk. By the time June locked up the car, Bendy was already at the front door. June made her way up the stairs. She opened the door and ushered her brother and the toon inside. 

“I’m home!” June yelled out. She put her bag down and knelt down just in time for two little girls to come bounding out of the kitchen and into her arms. They hugged her tightly and began talking to her all at once. 

“What? Am I invisible?” both girls turned to see their uncle standing there. Henry had to brace himself because his nieces nearly bowled him over. He managed to scoop both girls up in his arms. They giggled and hugged him. Henry realized how long he’d been away from his family and how much he missed this. 

“Back so soon, honey?” A man a little taller than Henry stepped out of the kitchen. He had long red hair tied into a loose ponytail, light grey eyes and a mustache. His eyes lit up when he noticed the man holding his daughters. 

“Henry?! Son of a gun!” he made his way over to the group. Jason gave June a hug before patting his brother-in-law on the back. “It’s been too long!” 

“Yeah, I know.” Henry could feel Bendy's excitement tickling at the back of his mind. He needed to introduce his friend before he burst! 

“Um guys, there’s someone I’d like you to meet.” In all the excitement, neither the girls nor Jason noticed the short black and white figure standing next to Henry. The entire room fell silent. He took this opportunity to set the girls back on the floor. The adults stood back and watched as the little group studied each other. 

After a moment, Bendy held out his hand. “Hi! I’m Bendy.” 

The taller of the two girls stepped forward and shook his hand. “Um, Hi! I’m Bethany. But you can call me Beth.” She pointed to a girl that seemed to be hiding behind her. “This is my little sister, Sarah.” Sarah waved at him but didn’t come any closer. 

Bendy tilted his head to the side. If he didn’t know any better, he’d swore that Sarah was scared of him. But that couldn’t be right. Kids loved him! He stepped a little closer and held out his hand to her. Sarah gasped and took a few steps back, thus pulling Beth back with her. “Sarah!” Beth shouted as she stumbled a bit. Sarah apologized but continued to hide behind her sister. 

Bendy stopped in his tracks and let his hand fall to his side. She really was scared of him! For some odd reason, that hurt. There was a slight pain in his chest. He didn’t like people being afraid of him, especially children. A hand landed on his shoulder. He looked up to see Jason staring down at him with a sad smile on his face. 

“Sorry about that Bendy. Sarah is very…shy. It takes her awhile to warm up to new people.” Bendy nodded in understanding but it still hurt. He absentmindedly rubbed at his chest. 

Jason sighed and asked the girls if they could set the table since they had guests. He waited for them to disappear into the kitchen before he turned to the rest of the group. 

“Alright, what's going on?” June looked at her brother and the toon. Henry was running his fingers through his white patch of hair. Bendy was wringing his gloved hands together. June sighed and began telling her husband what happened when she showed up at her brother’s place. Each person took turns telling their parts of the story and by the time they were done, Jason was hugging June tightly. He thanked Henry and Bendy over and over again for bringing her home safe. 

The girls ran out to proclaim that the table was set. Everyone made their way to the kitchen. Jason removed a large pot from the stove and placed it in the middle of the table. 

Beth took a seat next to Bendy and was amazed as the little toon sniffed at the air. As far as she could see, he didn’t have a nose! 

“Mmmm, that smells good! What is it?” Jason smiled and proudly puffed out his chest. He told the toon it was his specialty, beef stew. Everyone's bowl was filled and they all hummed their appreciation. June even kissed the chef which earned a few ‘ewwws' from around the table. 

Beth spent that time asking Bendy all sorts of questions. She couldn’t believe she had a living cartoon sitting next to her. He was so lively. Every time he told her a story, he would wave his hands around as he spoke. It was almost as if he couldn’t sit still. It was fascinating to her. Even more so than the fact that he didn’t have a neck! His head just kinda bobbed up and down on his shoulders. 

Sarah was fascinated by the toon but for different reasons. She watched as he talked with her sister and made her laugh and hang off his every word. He just didn’t seem real, even though he was sitting right there. Sarah had often daydreamed about her favorite cartoon characters coming to life. She never thought she’d actually meet one. It was very strange and it made her very uncomfortable. She knew her shyness made it hard for her to make friends. This situation wasn’t helping much. She even had a hard time meeting his odd eyes, often turning away when he caught her staring. She concentrated on her food and hoped her mother wouldn’t want to talk to her about this tonight. 

Henry tried to keep up with the conversation he was having with his sister and her husband, but the feelings of frustration that was scratching at the back of his mind, was distracting him. He would catch the little toon staring at his niece. He would try to include her in the stories he was telling Beth and either Sarah gave him short answers or didn’t answer at all. It always left a spike of negative emotions bouncing through their bond. Henry knew he would have to pull Bendy aside and talk to him before things got out of hand. 

After dinner was done, the kids went into the living room to watch a little television while the adults cleaned up the table. June went upstairs to fix up the guest room for her brother and toon demon. Jason and Henry sat on the couch, talking quietly while Bendy and the girls sat on the floor watching television. 

  
The evening was spent watching The Adventures of Davy Crockett: King of the Wild Frontier. The girls and Bendy pointed at the screen with huge grins on their faces. They would ‘ooh' and ‘ahh’ as Davy took on whatever the wilds had thrown in his direction. 

After awhile the girls tried to hide their yawns and swore up and down that they weren’t tired. Jason just chuckled and lead them up the stairs to their rooms. Bendy kept nodding off and claiming he was just resting his eyes. June crossed her arms over her chest and told the little toon that no one believed him. She smiled as she watched her brother scoop the toon up into his arms. She grabbed their bags and showed them to the guest room.

 The room was large enough to have a full sized bed against the wall, a dresser in one corner, a full length mirror in the other, and a cot on the other side of the room. June placed their bags near the dresser and pulled back the covers on the cot so Henry could put the little toon to bed. 

June caressed the toon’s cheek as her brother fished out his teddy bear from one of the bags. He placed it under the blankets and the siblings smiled as Bendy curled his body around it. 

June gave her brother another hug before bidding him a good night. He returned the gesture and watched her leave the room. 

“Don’t worry bud. Everything will be fine. You'll see.” Henry sent Bendy waves of calm and reassurance through their bond as he got ready for bed. 

Bendy sighed and let himself relax. Sure, they had to leave there home, but things will work themselves out. 

The little toon winced, clutched at his chest, and curled in on himself more. Why did these thoughts hurt him so much?  
.  
.  
.  
To Be Continued.

 


	2. Complicated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bendy learns the virtues of patience but is it enough...

The next morning June was up bright and early cooking breakfast. The smell of food stirred everyone in the house. One by one, eyes fluttered opened and bodies stretched. The smell of bacon and home made waffles sent everyone into the kitchen.

After breakfast, Beth told the little toon about the forest behind their home, just past the line of trees in the yard. Beyond that is a beautiful lake that they like to go to. At the mention of the large body of water, the toon got very nervous. She told him he didn’t have to swim in it if he didn’t want to. That wasn’t what worried him but he wasn’t going to get into that right now.

Beth grabbed Bendy by the hand and dragged him out the back door. Jason went to keep an eye on them. Sarah gave her uncle a weak smile and followed her sister out the door. Henry sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. All of a sudden he felt a light nudge at his side. He turned to see his sister standing there.

“What's going on bro? You look out of sorts.” He took a moment to get his thoughts together before answering.

“I’m worried about Bendy.” June tilted her head and waited for him to continue. “He’s been alone for a long time. When we escaped the studio and I brought him home, he was so happy. Sis, he tries to act confident, but deep down, he's scared of being left alone again.” She gave him a look of understanding. “I don’t know how to convince him that he doesn’t have to worry about that anymore.”

June reached up and gave his upper arm a little squeeze. “All you can do is keep doing what you’ve been doing. It’ll take time, but he’ll get it.” June smiled warmly. “You’ve practically adopted him.” Henry chuckled softly because it was kinda true.

The siblings walked out the back door and watched as the toon dashed around the yard. Beth was chasing him and Sarah just stood to the side and watched. Henry frowned slightly. He really needed to talk to Bendy. Henry didn’t like the negative emotions he was picking up whenever the toon was around Sarah.

He got his chance a few hours later when June called everyone in for lunch. She made a plate of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and poured them glasses of cold milk. After they were done, Henry pulled his friend into the living room while the girls went back outside.

  
“Okay buddy, what's going on?” Bendy tried to play it off and said it was nothing. Henry raised an eyebrow at that and the toon squirmed in his seat. He knew how hard it was to keep things from the man when he looked at him like that. Henry sighed and looked his friend in the eye.

“C’mon bud, talk to me.” Bendy hung his head for a moment before looking up at the man. “I don’t like that Sarah’s afraid of me. I don’t want her to think I’m a monster or somethin’…” the little toon trailed off as the thought of that made his chest feel tight.

Henry placed his hand on the little toon's shoulder. “Oh buddy, I’m sure she doesn’t think that. She's just-“

“shy! Yeah, yeah I’ve heard that already…” Henry frowned as Bendy pushed his hand way. He didn’t appreciate his sarcasm either. The toon sighed and rubbed his hands together before mumbling an apology. He'd never seen his friend like this before. He placed his hand on top of the toon's head to get his attention.

“Yes, Sarah is very shy. She has a hard time making friends because of it. She's not as outgoing as Beth.”

Bendy's eyes seem to shine as he thought about what Henry said. “Well, I’m more than happy to be her friend!” He balled a gloved hand into a fist and threw it up into the air. “I just have to try a little harder!” Henry chuckled and shook his head.

“Woah, easy there cowboy.  I don’t think that kind of approach will work on Sarah.”  The toon seemed to deflate a little bit.  “You just need to have a little patience with her.  Let her come to you. Everything will work out in the end.”  Henry gave the toon a warm smile when he agreed.

  
- **OoOoOoOoO** -

  
A few days later, Jason introduced the little toon to ‘Lucy’.  ‘Lucy’ turned out to be the big red rig that was parked on the side of the house. Bendy had never been so close to a truck with wheels bigger than himself so he was more than a little curious.

This is why he found himself strapped in the back seat of said rig with Sarah and Beth. He had a death grip on the seat as the girls cheered every time they hit a bump or raced down a hill. All Jason could do was laugh as the girls treated it like a roller coaster ride while the toon stared at them like they lost their minds.

The ride back home was less than adventurous and if Jason didn’t have to help him down from the rig, Bendy would have jumped out and kissed the ground as soon as he parked ‘Lucy’. Jason just shrugged. He thought the ride was quite enjoyable.

The next day June suggested that they all spend the day at the lake. She was busy packing their lunch while Jason grabbed two fishing poles, an empty can, and cooler from the closet. He handed one of the poles to Henry.

“You know how to fish?” the little toon pointed to the pole in Henry's hand.

“Our dad used to take me fishing all the time…” June yelled out, “Yeah, he can fish when he wasn't busy trying to throw the worms on me!” Henry rolled his eyes as Bendy laughed at him.

“It’s been awhile. I might be a little rusty.” Jason patted him on the back and smirked.

“It’s just like riding a bike! You never forget.” Jason handed Bendy the empty cooler and Sarah the empty can. As soon as June had the basket packed, they were on their way.

The group walked through the yard and passed the row of trees. Bendy was amazed at the forest that laid beyond. Sarah darted from tree to tree, turning over rocks, and pulling out worms she found under them. She dumped them into the can and ran up to Beth to show her how many she caught. Bendy was surprised that Beth was grossed out by the worms and Sarah wasn’t.

Within a few minutes they made their way to the lake. Bendy had to admit, it was beautiful. Sunlight made the crystal blue water sparkle. There were even ducks swimming in the middle of it. There was a wooden dock that stretched out over the water. The large trees provided shade for the various tables that were set up near their base.

June and Beth walked over to one of the tables while the rest of the group headed for the dock. Henry and Jason walked to the end of the dock with Bendy and Sarah following close behind. Jason took the cooler from the toon and leaned over the dock, filling it with some water before setting it off to the side.

The men sat down on the edge of the dock with their legs dangling over the side. Beth sat down on her father's lap. Bendy was a little nervous about being that close to the edge, but he did the same with Henry. He watched as she reached into the can and pulled out worms for both men.

Henry took his and showed the little toon how he placed the worm on the hook before casting it into the water. Jason cast his own and within moments, both men were catching up on old times. Bendy looked over to see Sarah leaning against her father's chest. She had a peaceful look on her face. The toon was a little confused as to why until he repeated her action. Turns out, he could feel Henry’s heart beating through his chest. It was surprisingly relaxing. His mind began to drift as he watched Henry turn the reel and bobbed the rod.

Bendy was brought out of his daze by a tug on the rod.  Then there was a stronger tug as Henry pulled back.  They had a fish on the line and it was putting up one heck of a fight!  A few minutes later, Henry managed to pull it out of the water.  It was a good size, almost a foot long,  and flapping around on the end of the line.  Bendy jumped up and danced around,  him and Henry were the first to catch a fish!  Unfortunately, he forgot how close he was to the edge of the dock.  He lost his balance and tipped over the side.  His arms were wind milling as he tried to slow down his fall.  He shut his eyes tightly.  He didn’t want to see his end coming.

Hands shot out and grabbed him! They pulled him back until he was a few feet away from the edge. He doubled over and panted heavily. He was saved!  He thought Henry had grabbed him. He opened his eyes to find not only Henry but Sarah standing there. Her eyes were wide and she had a strong grip on his upper arm while Henry had ahold of his shoulder.

Bendy looked at them both before focusing on Sarah. “Thank you!” She blinked and looked at her hand like she couldn’t believe she did what she did. Sarah let go of his arm and said, “You’re welcome” softly before running towards the table June set up. She left the toon happy and a little confused at the same time. He turned to Jason for an explanation, but he looked just as confused as the toon.  
Henry placed his hand on top of the little toon’s head. “Maybe she's warming up to ya.” That made Bendy really happy and he hoped it was true.

The guys spent another hour on the dock before June called them over for lunch. In that time Jason finally caught his own fish and they were both put in the cooler to be measured later.

They all sat at the table, laughing, and munching on turkey sandwiches and chips. Bendy told them about the first time he played stick ball with the neighborhood kids. He tried to catch the ball but it hit him on the head.

“You actually had birds flying around your head?” Beth was looking at the toon a little incredulous.

The little toon reached up and rubbed the top of his head at the memory. “Yeah, sometimes it's birds, sometimes it’s stars.” He shrugged and chuckled, “It’s a toon thing.” Everyone laughed and more stories were told around the table.

Later on, the adults were left quietly talking with one another at the table while the girls and little toon were back at the dock. They had grabbed a few slices of bread and was feeding the ducks. They giggled as the ducklings bobbed and bumped into each other as they dove for the pieces of bread.

There was something Beth had wanted to ask the toon and now seemed like as good a time as any. “Hey Bendy?” the little toon turned in her direction. “Why are you afraid of the lake?” the little toon seemed shocked by the question. Sarah was curious about his response as well. “If it’s because you can’t swim, maybe dad or uncle Henry can teach you! Mom and dad are trying to teach us, but we’re not good at it yet.”

“Ah well, yeah, I can’t swim, but that’s not why I’m scared.” The toon rubbed his gloved hands together as he tried to word this in a way the girls would understand. “See, I’m made of ink and if I fell into that lake, I would… melt.”

Both girls looked horrified. The little toon had to wave his hands and put on a shaky grin to calm them down. “I can touch water though. Like washing my hands or running through sprinklers, rain, or snow! I just can’t do stuff like that for too long. It’s not that bad, really!” Both girls looked at each other before looking back at him. Beth decided to change the subject because the thought of Bendy melting in the lake sent a shiver up her spine.

It was late afternoon when June started packing things up. Jason told Sarah to dump the rest of the worms near a tree. Henry opened the cooler to check on the fish. Jason grabbed his fish by the mouth and gills while Bendy tried to hold the one Henry caught in his arms. The fish was just as feisty as ever and its tail kept slapping him. Somehow they managed to measure both fish and it turned out Jason’s was a little longer by a few inches. The girls cheered be cause their dad caught a bigger fish! Both men laughed and patted each other on the back before having the fish tossed back into the lake. They grabbed their stuff and headed back to the house.

All and all, Henry thought the day went rather well. This was the calmest he or Bendy had felt in a very long time. They both really needed this. He definitely needed to take the little toon fishing more often.

  
- **OoOoOoOoO** -

A few days later, Jason got called in to move some cargo cross country. He was going to cancel the job, but June told him not to. They needed the money and she knew just how antsy he got if he wasn’t able to hit the road for long periods of time. She even joked and called ‘Lucy' the other woman that needed his attention. Jason laughed and hugged her tightly. He wondered how he lucked out and ended up with a woman like her.

The day he was set to leave, Jason had a bag with a week’s worth of clothes in it. He hugged his girls, patted Bendy on the head, and shook Henry’s hand. He asked his brother-in-law to please look after his family. Henry nodded. And with that, Jason hit the road in ‘Lucy’.

Even though the girls still had a month before they had to go back to school, June took the girls and Bendy into town to do some school shopping. The local mall was a decent size and very lively. People often stopped to stare at the living cartoon that was darting from storefront to storefront. June didn’t mind as long as people kept their hands to themselves. She found herself looking out for the little toon like she did one of her own children. It was an odd feeling considering the toon was almost as old as she was. Now there was an amusing though.

Beth actually ran into some of her classmates in one of the clothing stores. She was more than happy to introduce them to the little toon. Sarah moved to stand near their mother and watched as the toon entertained the small crowd. June sighed. She needed to talk to her when they got home. There was more going on than simple shyness.

They went from store to store picking school supplies and new clothes. Beth even found a store that sold bow ties! June chuckled as Beth had Bendy try on bow ties of all shapes, sizes, and colors. They settled on one small powder blue and one red bow tie. The little toon was so happy, he gave June a hug.

“Thanks Mrs. June!” she patted him on the head and told him he was welcome. Soon they gathered up all their stuff and headed home.

Henry was sitting on the couch, reading the newspaper when the door flew open. It was like a whirlwind of packages, little girls and one tired looking mom. June greeted her brother then ordered the girls upstairs to put their things away.  She followed the them up,  leaving Bendy to plop on the couch with Henry.

“Well, you looked like you had fun.” Henry laughed when the toon sighed dramatically.

“I did have a lot of fun, but we walked around so much, I thought my legs were gonna fall off!” Bendy fell back, nearly sinking into the couch cushions.

“Heh, that's the one thing I don’t miss: shopping with my sister!” He chuckled and shook his head. “She would drag me from store to store and I’d end up carrying her stuff!” Bendy laughed as he tried to imagine the man being weighed down by a mountain of packages.

“Well, I did get to meet some of Beth's friends and I got these!” the toon pulled two bow ties to show to Henry. “Pretty nice huh! Beth helped me pick them out.” Henry agreed that they were nice. He told the toon he should pack them in the bag so they won’t get misplaced. Bendy agreed and ran up the stairs.

The little toon ran down the hall to the room he shared with Henry. He pulled the bag they packed out of the closet and careful stowed away his bow ties. He closed the bag up and placed it back in the closet.

Bendy left the room and walked back down the hall. He thought back to the passed week and a half. Things weren’t as bad as he thought they would be. Sure he had to leave the place he called home for a little while, but this was starting to feel like home too. Here with June, Jason, and the girls… it felt nice.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of muffled voices coming from the girls' room. He knows he shouldn’t ease drop but his curiosity got the better of him. He quietly tipped toed down the hall until he was close enough to hear what they were saying. The door to their room was cracked just enough that they couldn’t see him.

“Today wasn’t so bad Sarah.” Bendy could hear Beth cheerful voice ring out in the room.

“Umm, yeah, I guess so.” That was Sarah. She sounds so unsure.

“Alright honey, what’s the matter? Talk to me.” June had that stern voice that left no room for debate.

“It’s just that…” Why was she hesitating? “he scares me.” That was all he needed to hear. It was like he was hit in the chest with a sledgehammer. The pain was intense! He winced and gripped his chest as he made his way down the hall.

He thought everything was okay! He thought he and Sarah was growing closer ever since the incident at the lake. He guessed he was wrong! He tried, he really did, but it didn’t work. Nothing worked!

_So why keep trying?_

The little toon frowned. He didn’t know where that thought came from, but he agreed with it. Why keep trying if it caused him nothing but pain! Once that thought set in, a kind of coldness settled in his chest. Like an empty space where he felt nothing.

Henry’s head shot up as he felt something unusual from their bond. The emotions felt muffled. Like Bendy threw up a small wall and the feelings seem to trickle through a crack.  Henry watched as the toon descended the stairs. He was smiling but something seemed off about it.

“Hey bud, you alright?” Henry didn’t know what was going on but he didn’t like it.

“Oh yeah, I’m fine.” He waved a dismissive hand at his friend. “I just figured some things out. You were right. I was trying way too hard. I’m not doing that anymore.” Bendy walked passed Henry and out the back door. He left the man bewildered and a little worried. _‘What happened up there?’_

 

**-Meanwhile Upstairs-**

 

“Sarah!” the girl curled up on the bed as her sister yelled at her. “Bendy isn’t scary!  He’s really nice and funny. He just wants to be your friend!”

“Beth! That's enough.” Beth shut her mouth and sat down on her own bed while June went to sit next to Sarah. She rubbed her back softly to get attention.

“Listen baby, I know Bendy is a bit unusual, but he's a good guy. He even saved my life!” Both girls looked at her surprised.

“I won’t get into right now, but it's true.” She gave them both a soft smile. “See, Bendy had been alone for a very long time before your uncle found him. He doesn’t like to be alone, so he tries to make as many friends as he can. Your uncle Henry is also the only family he has right now."

Sarah stared down at her hands in her lap. She didn’t know the reason he acted the way he did was because he was lonely. She felt so bad for the way she treated him. All of a sudden a thought crossed her mind.

“W-What about us?” June looked a little confused. “If he thinks uncle Henry is family, doesn’t that make him apart of our family too?”

“Yeah! Sarah's right! That would make him our cousin!” Beth ran over and hopped on her sister's bed. June smiled warmly and reached out to hug both of her girls. She was so proud of them.

“Listen, we'll have a talk with Bendy later.  I think he's gonna love being apart of our family too.”  Both girls agreed but Sarah looked a little uncomfortable.

“C-Can I apologize to him first. I’ve been real mean to him.”

“Sure!” Beth playfully punched her sister in the arm. “Just don’t take too long.” They laughed and gave each other one more hug before heading downstairs.

Dinner that evening felt a little strange. Bendy seemed relaxed as he joked and told stories at the table but it didn’t feel right to Henry. The emotions still felt muffled and a little distant. Then there was Sarah. She looked like she wanted to say something to the toon but couldn’t work up the nerve to do so. Henry took it as a sign that she was trying to break out of her shyness. Maybe when she finally got the chance to talk to him, things will return to normal. He sure hoped so.

  
**-OoOoOoOoO-**

  
The night was warm. A slight breeze blew through the girls' open window. The curtains waved slightly. It was quiet enough for everyone in the house to slip into a peaceful slumber. Everyone that is , except Sarah. Her sleep was restless. She really wanted to apologize, but every time he looked at her, it made a shiver run up her spine. Maybe it was her imagination, but it was almost as if he didn’t want to hear from her. No one else seemed to noticed so she didn’t say anything.

Sarah had her back to the bedroom door. She didn’t like facing that way because the shadows always seemed thicker and scarier in those corners. She knew there were no such thing as monsters, but still, better to be safe than sorry.

If she had faced the door, she might have noticed the shadows by the closet seemed more solid than normal. That the shadows were actually moving. A tall, lanky figure emerged from the corner. He had long curving horns that nearly touched the ceiling. He had a wide toothy grin plastered on his face and one exposed eye that glowed a sickly yellow in color. He quietly knelt down next to Sarah’s bed and just watched her.

Look at her. He tried every thing to gain her trust and nothing worked!

_Typical human. They can't be trusted…_

He didn’t even do anything to scare her and she still didn’t trust him!

_It was a waste of time…_

He just wanted to be her friend, like he was with Beth.

_That’s not too much to ask, now is it?_

That’s it! He wasn’t going to try anymore if it wasn’t going to work. He was tired of this.

_Maybe she needs to see what a monster really is…_

He reached out. Long black claws pieced his white gloves as his hand hovered over the back of her head. His hand froze in place. He frowned as it began to shake slightly. His hand moved down until it came to the blanket that slid down her shoulders. He gripped the edge with the tips of his claws before pulling it up and laying it against the back of her neck.

Sarah startled awake when she felt something brush against her neck. She shook under her covers when it felt like someone was standing behind her. She took a few deep breathes and turned over to find… nothing. Nothing was there. Sarah laid there for a moment before throwing her blanket off to the side and hopping out of her bed. She made her way over to Beth’s side of the room where she gently shook her awake.

“Mmm wha?? S-Sarah? Whas wrong?” Beth sat up a little bit and rubbed her eyes. She blinked to clear her vision and could see how scared her little sister was. “Had a nightmare?”

Sarah looked around nervously. It sure didn’t feel like a nightmare but she wasn’t going to tell her sister that. “Y-Yeah…”

“C'mon.” Beth pulled her covers aside and Sarah practically dove into her bed. She rolled her eyes as she threw the covers over them both and her little sister curled up against her. Sarah wished her big sister a “good night” and got a sleepy “whatever” as a response. Beth went back to sleep right away but Sarah took awhile to calm down before sleep could claim her.

Neither girl noticed the shadows near the closet seemed to move. He leaned forward with a huge grin on his face. He tilted his horned head and watched the girls drift off to sleep. When he was sure neither one would wake up, he slipped his lanky body through the half opened bedroom door and back out into the hall.

_That wasn’t so bad._

His grin grew a little wider as the yellow glow of his eye grew a little bright. No, that wasn’t bad at all.  
.  
.  
.  
To Be Concluded.


	3. Hide 'n Seek

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When is a child's game no longer fun? When you're playing with a demon.

It took about two days for June to notice just how tired her girls were in the morning. Both sat at the kitchen table with their eyes half lidded and they were picking at their breakfast.

“Girls, what’s wrong?” June brought her own plate to the table and sat down. “ Didn’t get enough sleep last night?”

Beth tried to hide her yawn with her hand. “Sarah keeps waking me up at night so she can climb in my bed.”

Henry was curious. “What's wrong kiddo?” Sarah looked at him and told him it was just a nightmare. When he asked her what her nightmare was about, she just shrugged a little.

“I don’t know. It just feels like someone is standing by my bed. I-I get really scared and sometimes can’t move.” She frowned and poked at her pancakes. “Then I wake up and nothing is there…”

Henry felt it for a split second. There was a sense of satisfaction that streaked through the bond before it disappeared. He looked over at Bendy but the toon was busy shoveling food into his mouth. Henry shook his head. Maybe it was just his imagination.

“Sweety, it was just a dream. Dreams can’t hurt you.” Sarah looked up at her mom and sighed a bit. “I-I know mom.” She knew this, but how could she tell them that it didn’t feel like just a dream. Better to keep this to herself. Besides, she still had to apologize to Bendy. She just needed to figure out how.

The morning went by rather quietly. June did the laundry while Henry watched the girls and toon play in the backyard. Henry still didn’t like that the feelings he was getting from the toon was so muted but things seemed to be going alright. Although, Sarah was more standoffish than usual. Henry figured the nightmares and lack of sleep was making her a little jumpy.

June fixed lunch for everyone and afterwards the girls decided to watch a little TV. A half an hour later, the TV was watching them. Henry chuckled. It looked like they couldn’t keep their eyes open anymore. He let them rest. It looked like they needed it.

It started to grow dark outside when the house phone rang. June answered it. It turned out to be a neighbor and friend of hers named Mrs. Jordan. She was an elderly woman that June sometimes fixed meals for when her son had to work late. When this happened, June just piled the girls in her car and take them with her, but Henry volunteered to look after the girls while she did what she needed to do.

“Are you sure about this?”

“Go on sis, we'll be fine. I don’t mind looking after my nieces for a few hours.” June smiled and gave her brother a hug. She thanked him and told him there was some Mac and Cheese he could heat up when they got hungry or some hotdogs in the freezer if they didn’t want that.

“Got it Juney.” June grabbed her keys. She told the girls she was going out for a little while and that they were to listen to their uncle while she was out. They both nodded and she hugged them. June ruffled her fingers between Bendy's horns before rushing out the door.

The girls told their uncle that they were going to play a game up in their room. He told them it was fine.

“I’m gonna be fixin’ dinner soon so be ready when I call ya.” They both agreed and ran up the stairs. Henry noticed Bendy was still sitting on the couch.

“You’re not gonna join them bud?” The toon shook his head.

“Nah. There's a musical on that I’ve been wanting to watch. I'll play a game with them later.” The little toon smiled and returned his attention to the television. Henry just shrugged and headed for the kitchen.

Henry decided to cook the hotdogs instead of the Mac and Cheese since that was one of Bendy's favorites. He put them in a pot of water and put it on the stove to cook. He rifled through the bread box on the counter to see if they had any buns when the lights suddenly went out!

“Shoot, a fuse must have blown.” He walked over and turned the stove off before pulling a flashlight from the cabinet under the sink. He flipped the switch and a beam of light shot out of the device.

He walked into the living room to find Bendy standing by the couch and the girls standing at the top of the stairs.

“Uncle Henry? W-What's going on?” Beth sounded a little nervous. Sarah was right by her side, holding her big sister's hand.

“Don’t worry guys. It looks like a fuse blew. I can fix it.” Henry headed for the basement door that was right under the steps. “Girls, stay where you are. I’ll have the lights on in no time.”

The man felt a tug on his sleeve. Bendy was looking up at him. “Hey Henry, can I help?” Henry put his hand on the toon’s shoulder. “Sure bud. You can hold the flashlight while I fix the fuse.” Bendy nodded and they both headed down into the dark basement.

Henry waved the beam of light around as he searched the walls for the fuse box. He found it on the far left wall of the basement. “There it is.”

Henry handed the flashlight to the little toon and instructed him to point it at the box. He gingerly opened the small door and inspected the fuses.

“Huh, that's odd.” Henry ran his fingertips over the some of the knobs. “The fuses don’t seem to be blown. It looks like someone pulled them out just enough to make the lights go out.” He frowned. “This doesn’t make any se-“

Something blunt and heavy hit Henry on the back of the head. He crumpled to the ground and was out cold!

Bendy was standing there with a broken flashlight in his hand. He threw it off to the side. He sighed and shook his head. “Sorry Henry, but I don't want the lights turned back on just yet.” The toon turned and headed for the stairs, leaving the man unconscious on the cold floor.

Beth and Sarah were getting a little nervous. It didn’t usually take this long to get the lights turned back on. The sounds of soft footsteps from the basement caught their attention and they both leaned over the banister to see who would come through the door.

They were surprised to see Bendy walk through the door and close it behind himself. The toon kept walking until he was standing at the bottom of the steps.

“Bendy, where’s uncle Henry?” Beth questioned.

The little toon placed his gloved hands behind his back and swayed on his feet. “Oh, he’s still working on the fuse box. I thought we might play a game while we wait for the lights to come back on!”

Sarah whimpered softly. She didn’t like this.

Beth looked confused. “A game?”

The toon tapped his chin with his finger. “Hmm, what game should we play?” After a moment he snapped his fingers. “I know! How about ‘Hide and Seek'.”

He pointed up at them. The smile he had on his face was making both girls very nervous.

“I’ll cover my eyes. You find a place to hide. I’ll count to ten, then I’ll come to find you!”

Beth shook her head. “Bendy, I don’t know about this…” The little toon wasn’t even listening to her. He was already covering his eyes with his hands.

“You two better hide, or I’m gonna getcha! Now, one…two…”

“Bendy wait!”

“…three…four…”

The girls gasped and backed away from the steps. There was enough moonlight pouring through the window for them to see the toon changing. His arms and legs were growing longer. He was actually getting taller!

“…five…six…”

Long black claws ripped through his white gloves. His horns grew long, crooked, and almost touched the ceiling.

“…seven…eight…”

That was enough for Beth. She grabbed Sarah’s hand and pulled her along as they ran for their room. They ran in and closed the door behind them.

“…nine…ten! Ready or not. **Here I come! Heh, heh, heh, AHAHAHAHAH!”** Bendy's deranged laughter rang throughout the house.

Beth knew their bedroom door couldn’t be locked so she did what she saw in a movie: she shoved the back of their wooden chair under the door knob. Both girls jumped when they heard heavy footsteps slowly making their way up the stairs.

“B-Beth! What are we gonna do?!” Sarah was shaking like a leaf. She didn’t know Bendy could change like that!

Beth paced a little. Fear was making hard for her to think. They couldn’t hide in here. He would find them! There was no way they could sneak passed him. There was no other way out…wait!

“Sarah!” she grabbed her little sister by the shoulders to get her attention. “The fire ladder!” It only took Sarah a second to understand what her sister was talking about.

They ran to the window that was between their beds. There, bolted to the bottom of the windowsill was a rolled up and latched chain ladder. Their father installed this ladder in case a fire broke out in the house. If they couldn’t reach the stairs, they could get out this way! Their parents even held fire drills so they girls would know how to use the ladder safely.

Beth and Sarah turned towards the door when they heard whistling coming from down the hall. They didn’t have much time! Both girls worked together to unlatch the ladder and let it roll down the side of the house.

Beth helped her sister through the window first. As she waited for her to get a good grip on the rungs, the door knob began to jiggle.

**“Girls~ I know you’re in there.”** Bendy jiggled the door knob again before he started banging on the door. Beth wasted no more time. She threw her legs over the windowsill and managed to climb half way out when she saw Bendy's claws tearing through the door. She yelled for Sarah to keep going and they made their way down the chain ladder as fast as they could without slipping.

The wooden door was no match for the ink demon. He tore it off its hinges and threw it off to the side. He ducked his head as he walked into the room. His one visible eye glowed that sick yellow as it swiveled about. He saw no signs of the girls. He checked in the closet and under the beds, but they were no where to be found.

He growled softly. They couldn’t be hiding in another room. They put a chair against the door so he couldn’t get in. There was no other way out. Where could they have gone?

That’s when he noticed the slight breeze coming from the window. He tilted his head to the side. Surly they didn’t jump. He walked up to the window and stuck his head out. He noticed a chain ladder that reached down to the ground and two small figures running across the backyard, heading for the forest.

**“Very clever girls.”** The toon demon backed away from the window. He chuckled and shook his head as he left the room. He wasn’t expecting that. They just made the game more interesting. He made his way down the stairs, through the kitchen, and out the back door.

Bendy stood in the yard for a moment. His thoughts were a little muddled. For just a few seconds, he had no idea what he was doing.

_The girls…_

Oh yeah, that’s right. He had to get the girls. They were playing a game! He needed to catch them…

The toon demon hunched over and began to growl. His growl deepened as his body increased in size. His white gloves were long gone, replaced by huge clawed hands. His arms and legs grew longer and thicker. His teeth became sharper and his horns longer, curvier. His visible eye was almost black save for a very tiny pinprick of yellow light. Bendy took on his berserker form. He threw his head back and let loose a roar that shook the ground around him.

_It’s time to go hunting for little girls._

The demon’s grin grew impossibly wide as he took off, tearing across the yard and barreling into the woods.

Beth and Sarah knew those woods a lot better than Bendy. They hoped to hide from him until uncle Henry could find them. Something was wrong with the toon and they hoped their uncle could help him. Beth was using the moonlight to find their way around while leading Sarah by the hand.

“Beth? What are we going to do?” Sarah sniffled and tried to wipe the tears from her eyes. She whispered so Bendy wouldn’t hear them.

“We need to find a place to hide until help comes, alright?”

Sarah was about to say something when a loud roar made her cover her ears. They turned to the sound of something really big heading in their direction. Both girls began to panic. They were out in the open! Sarah noticed a thick fallen log a few feet away. She recognized it as one of her hiding spots. Sarah grabbed her big sister’s hand and pulled her over to the spot. There was a hole just big enough for the both of them hidden under the fallen log. They both slid into the hole and covered their mouths so they wouldn’t make a sound.

Something heavy stormed into the area. Beth and Sarah could hear deep growling and trees toppling over. The girls huddled close to one another and hoped they wouldn’t be found. Heavy footfalls shook the ground around them and a huge shadow was cast over their hiding spot.

The growling stopped and it was quiet for just a moment when a large hand gripped the log they were hiding under. The girls watched wide eyed as long claws dug into the wood, causing it to bow and splinter slightly from the strong grip. All they could do was lay on their backs and watched as the thick log bent under Bendy’s weight.

Sarah closed her eyes tightly and prayed the log wouldn’t break or they get crushed by the huge hand. Tears ran down her cheeks. She didn’t know why this was happening. Was this all her fault? Was Bendy angry with them because of the way she treated him? She wished she had apologized. Maybe this wouldn’t be happening.

Just when the girls thought the log was going to break, Bendy let it go. He growled lowly and moved on to a different area. They sat there and listened to his heavy footfalls move away until it grew quiet. Sarah leaned against her big sister’s side and sobbed softly. Beth wrapped her arms around her and held her close.

“We can’t stay here.” Beth whispered. “He’s gonna find us.” She wasn’t sure where they could go! Hiding near trees he could just pull out of the ground was a really bad idea. Where else could they go? Then it hit her… “The lake…”

“Huh?” Sarah looked up at her sister. Beth told her they should head for the lake.

“He’s afraid of the lake, remember? We can go out in the water and he won’t be able to get us.” Sarah didn’t like the sound of that plan. Neither one of them were good swimmers.

“I dunno Beth. We’re not suppose to go into that water alone…”

“I’d rather go in the water then be caught by him! Don’t worry, I’ll be there with you. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

Sarah sighed softly. As much as she would rather stay here, she knew her sister was right. They were gonna get caught if they stayed here. She gave Beth a shaky nod and they waited a few more minutes before poking their heads out of the hole.

The coast looked clear. There was no sign of Bendy. They crawled out from under the log and took off running towards the lake.

They didn’t noticed a tall figure standing still amongst the trees. A large horned head tilted to the side as he watched them run towards the lake.

_Of course they would head for the lake. They have no where else to go._

His grin grew feral. The game was almost over.

 

* * *

 

Henry groaned. The throbbing from the pentagram in his right hand roused him. The pain in his hand was worse than the blow to the back of his head. He rubbed the area and blinked to clear his vision. He wasn’t sure how long he was out, but he knew he had to find Bendy.

He got up and swayed on his feet slightly. He ran up the stairs and pushed open the door. The house was quiet, too quiet. Henry called out to the girls and got no reply. He noticed the back door was wide open. He ran out to the backyard and noticed a large ink spot in the grass and a trail that lead towards the forest. Henry looked back at the house and he noticed a chain ladder hanging from the girls' bedroom window.

“The girls must have snuck out the window and ran for the woods. Bendy is hot on their heels. I gotta reach them before it’s too late!”

Henry took off running for the forest. He tried probing the bond and was hit with a jumbled mess of emotions. The throbbing in his hand seemed to be tugging him in the direction he needed to go. Henry winced when he looked at his right hand. The pentagram was glowing a faint red. He could even feel the ink stirring in his veins. It only did that when things were really bad.

“Hang on guys. I’m coming!”

 

* * *

 

Beth and Sarah made it to the part of the lake their family usually come to. They needed to stop and catch their breathe. Sarah looked around. So far, they were alone. Bendy hadn’t found them yet. Maybe they could hide here without going into the water.

“C'mon.” Beth took Sarah's hand and lead her to the dock. Beth was getting nervous herself. Even with the moon shining down on it, the water looked black. She couldn’t see through it like she could during the day. She didn’t like that.

They stood on the land that was connected to the dock. Both girls were having second thoughts when they heard a deep growl coming from behind them. They turned slowly and froze when they saw Bendy standing a few yards away from them. He was bigger and frankly scarier, with sharp teeth and claws. He growled and walked towards them, the ground shook with each step. Beth grabbed her sister’s hand and they took off running down the dock.

Bendy stopped short of stepping foot on the dock. He watched as the girls dashed across the wooden planks. Confusion and concern seemed to cut through the fog in his mind when he noticed they weren’t slowing down.

‘Wait! What are they doing? They're not gonna-'

He didn’t get the chance to finish his thought when the girls jumped off the dock!  
Bendy kept his feet on the ground as he leaned over the dock and saw the girls trying to swim away. They were struggling to keep their heads above water. He reached down with his massive clawed hand and scooped both girls out of the water. The toon demon backed up until he was a few feet away from the water.

He looked down at his hand. Sarah and Beth were soaking wet. They were curled up against one another and coughing up water.

He couldn’t believe it! How could they do something so stupid? They could have gotten killed!

_You should have left them…_

Bendy’s whole body stiffened. He wouldn’t let that happen! Where did that thought come from?!

The ink demon hunched over in pain. He gripped at his chest with his other hand. It was like something was squirming around and squeezing his chest. He whined and gritted his teeth. Bendy looked down to see both girls staring up at him. There was a mixture of fear and confusion on their faces.

_Good. They should be afraid._

NO! That’s not what he wanted!

_Are you sure about that?_

Yes. He'd never want to scare kids like this!

_Then why are you chasing them?_

…

_See_.

Bendy shut his eye tightly. He couldn’t think straights. These thoughts were confusing him.

Just at that moment, Henry ran out of the forest and into the clearing. He couldn’t see the girls in the toon's large hand, but he could hear them crying.

“Bendy!” said demon turned to face him. He looked confused and in pain. Henry ignored the throbbing in his hand. He approached the demon slowly.

“Easy there bud. Just put the girls down so no one gets hurt. “

Bendy had a shocked expression on his face.

What was Henry talking about? He wasn’t going to hurt them…

_Some friend he is! We saved them! Why would he assume we were hurting them? Looks like he doesn’t trust us…_

Henry stopped in his tracks. He could feel it. Anger. A building anger that was directed towards him! “Bud? What’s going on?” A growl that was growing louder was his only response.

_He said he trusted us. He said we were apart of his family. He lied…_

Anger and betrayal cut through the bond like a knife. Bendy's claws curled around the girls for a moment but he had enough presence of mind to place them on the ground before he turned on Henry.

Henry knew he was in trouble when Bendy’s visible eye turned completely black. Bendy roared and rushed towards him. Henry managed to avoid the first swipe of Bendy’s huge hand but couldn’t avoid getting pinned to the ground by the other.

Henry struggled as hard as he could, but the ink demon’s claws sunk deep into the ground around him, and pressed his body into the dirt. Henry’s heart was pounding in his chest as he stared up at his friend. Bendy's face was full of rage. The toon’s anger overridden any attempts Henry made to calm him down through the bond.

“C’mon bud! Don’t do this!” Henry could feel ink seeping through the pentagram in his palm. He just knew the white part of his eyes were bleeding into inky black. He could even feel his canines elongating.

No! This was the last thing Henry wanted. He didn’t want to fight his friend. **“Bendy please! You have to snap out of this! I don’t know what’s going on, but let me help you!”** Bendy just growled at him and curled his free hand into a massive fist.

_We don’t need him…_

 

**-Meanwhile-**

 

Beth and Sarah watched as Bendy pinned their uncle to the ground. They couldn’t hear what their uncle was saying because the ink demon was growling so loud.

“Beth, what do we do?”

“I-I don’t know! He’s gonna hurt uncle Henry...” Beth was at a loss for what to do.

Sarah was horrified. She was on the verge of tears. Uncle Henry was going to get hurt…and it was all her fault. She had to do something…

Sarah left her sister’s side and ran towards Bendy. Beth called out to her but she couldn’t turn back now. She needed to do this!

Bendy loomed over Henry. He cocked his fist back, ready to deliver the final blow. All of a sudden, he felt tiny cold hands tugging on one of his fingers. He blinked. It was Sarah!

“Please cousin Bendy! Don’t do this! I-I'm sorry. I know I treated you mean when you came here. Don’t be mad at uncle Henry. This is my fault!” She burst into tears but continued to tug on his large finger. Bendy's growl trailed off and he lowered his fist.  He just stared at the little girl.

‘Wait, what did she call me?’

_It’s a trick. Don’t listen to her._

‘She called me… ‘cousin’?’

_Lies. That’s all humans do is lie._

‘But-'

_After everything you've done, do you really think they will let you be apart of their family?_

…

_You don’t need them._

Henry yelled for Sarah to get away from Bendy! Unfortunately, Beth joined her in trying to pry the ink demon’s hand off of him. Neither girl was listening to him. The anger he felt before gave way to guilt. Henry could even feel the hand that was holding him down begin to shake. Bendy’s eye was no longer completely black. The pinprick of light grew wide but it still had that unnatural yellow glow.

Bendy didn’t know what was going on. He tried to search his own memory but there were parts missing here and there. He knew he did something wrong. He could feel it. He didn’t even know why he was attacking Henry!

_He lied to us._

Bendy backed away and released Henry from his hold. He whined and shook his head. These thoughts, they didn’t belong to him.

_You can’t trust him. He is keeping you from true freedom._

Bendy doubled over as he clawed at his chest. It hurt so much! It was like… like something was squirming in his chest! He thought it was just his imagination all this time, but maybe… The ink demon held his hand flat against his chest. He could feel something moving against his palm. He grimaced. Oh man, this was gonna hurt.

_They are only human. They will never understand you. Not like your own kind…_

‘I’m not listening to you anymore!’

Bendy let out an earth shaking roar. Henry didn’t know what was going on but he had to get the girls to safety. He wrapped one large, ink encased arm around both girls, picked them up and moved back towards the dock.

The girls squeaked as a strong arm wrapped around them and picked them up. Sarah looked over her shoulder to see her uncle holding them close to his chest as he backed up towards the dock. She was startled to see sharp fangs poking out of his lips and could see only one eye that glowed green.

“U-Uncle Henry?” He looked down at her and smiled warmly. **“Yeah kiddo, it’s me.”** His voice was deeper but it really was him.

The three of them watched as Bendy plunged his claws deep into his own chest!

“What is he doing!?” Beth yelled.

**“I don’t know, but he needs help! I want you two to stay here, understand?”** Both girls nodded and he put them down on the ground. He gave them a reassuring smile before he turned and ran towards his friend.

By the time Henry was within a few feet of Bendy, he was hunched over in terrible pain. The toon demon looked like he was trying to dig something out of his chest. Before Henry could say anything, Bendy seemed to grab hold of something. The toon shut his eye tight and yanked his hand a few times.

Henry watched as Bendy pulled out what looked like a thick, blobby, string of ink. The toon grunted and continued to pull until a head emerged in his claws. Henry almost recoiled in disgust. The…thing looked like a giant slug made of ink!

Bendy struggled to pull the rest of it out. It purposely thrashed about in his chest. The pain was intense and it was hard to concentrate on what he was doing. It opened its mouth and screeched at him. The slug flashed a ring of sharp teeth as it snapped at him.

The ink demon growled back at it but he could feel it trying to burrow back into his chest! Just when he thought the slug would slip from his grasp, a pair of large inky hands grabbed part of the creature's body and pulled! Bendy was relieved to see his friend. He didn’t have the strength to do this on his own.

Henry managed to pull enough of the pulsating body out of Bendy’s chest to wrap his larger arm around it for better leverage. He planted his feet firmly into the ground, gritted his sharp teeth, and gave one more mighty tug! The rest of its inky body popped out, leaving a gaping hole in the demon's chest, just below his ragged white bow tie.

Henry used his strength to heave and toss the five foot long slug off to the side where it landed on the ground, hard! It wasn’t moving so he went to check on Bendy. The toon was on his hand and knees. His other hand was pressed against his chest. Henry could see ink seeping between his large fingers. He reached up to examine the wound.

**“Oh man.”** He winced. **“Bendy, are you alright? “** Bendy looked down at him and gave him a shaky, toothy smile. Henry noticed with great relief that his friend’s eye glowed a soft white instead of that sickly yellow. The pain seemed to be gone and the hole closed up… but the bond was wide open again. Henry was hit by a massive amount of guilt that was coming from the toon demon. He countered it with a wave of reassurance of his own. The demon just shook his head and looked down at the ground. Henry sighed and was about to say something when a hiss caught his attention.

The slug was staring (at least he thought it was. It didn’t have eyes!) at them. It's mouth was opened wide as it showed off rows and rows of sharp teeth. Ink was dripping down its pulsing body and pooling under it.

Henry stood in front of Bendy with his fists raised in a boxer’s stance. There was no way in hell he was letting that thing anywhere near his friend again. It hissed and slid forward a few feet before it just stopped. Henry watched as it turned it's head slightly to its left before looking back at him. Henry could swear the creature odd hiss sounded like laughter. He scowled and wondered what it was up to when it suddenly bolted to the left. It was heading straight for the girls!

**“Beth, Sarah- LOOK OUT!”** Bendy's head shot up when Henry called out to the girls. The slug was slithering towards them!

Both girls screamed when the slug turned in their direction. It was moving so fast. Sarah grabbed her sister's hand and they took off running. They could hear its hiss and gnashing of teeth as it got closer. They couldn’t out run it! It felt like it was right on top of them. There was a hiss at their backs, the girls screamed, then…

A huge fist smashed the slug's head into the ground. The force of which knocked both girls off their feet. They turned to find a very angry Bendy looming over them. He picked up what was left of the slug and roared at it. It tried to raise its mangled head and hiss at him, but it came out as a garbled mess.

Bendy couldn’t believe something like this was inside of him. It whispered things to him and messed with his head. His memory of the past few days were a little fuzzy but he knew he did some terrible things because of it. No more!

Bendy cocked his arm back and tossed the ink slug. The girls watched its body sail right over them and land with a huge splash into the lake! A few seconds later, the slug breached the surface of the water with a loud screech. It thrashed around as chunks of its body began to sloth off. It opened its mouth but its body split down the middle and it…melted. It was gone. Beth remembered Bendy telling her what would happen if he fell into the lake. It made her shudder to think that could have happened to him. She wanted to thank him for saving their lives but the ink demon was backing away from them. He shook his head and whined softly. When he was far enough away, he slumped down to the ground on his knees, and lowered his head.

Henry walked up to him. The guilt and sadness was thick through their bond. He grimaced because those emotions were suffocating. Henry concentrated so that the ink covering his arms would fall away or get absorbed back into his body. He sighed softly and reached up to place his hand on the toon’s cheek. Bendy whimpered when he felt Henry press his forehead against his own.

“Bendy. None of this was your fault. That thing's to blame.” Bendy's eye swiveled over to see Sarah and Beth standing a few feet behind Henry. Memories of him chasing them and their frightened faces flooded his mind. He groaned and pulled away from Henry. Bendy shut his eye as inky tears slid down his cheek. After everything he did tonight, he didn’t deserve comfort.

“Oh buddy…” The feeling of guilt and self loathing was growing stronger. Henry didn’t like him beating himself up over this. He was going to try to reach him again when he felt a light tug on his shirt. He looked down to see Sarah standing on one side of him and Beth stand on the other. They both looked at him before looking at Bendy. Neither girl had to say a word. Henry knew what they wanted. He carefully scooped both girls up in his arms and they approached Bendy together.

He really messed up! Bits and pieces of his memory was returning and he was ashamed of how he acted in those past couple of days. Especially the way he treated Sarah. After this, none of them will trust him. They won’t have anything to do with him.

The poor toon’s thoughts were interrupted by tiny hands touching his face. He was startled to find Henry holding his nieces in his arms. The girls had their hands on his face. Sarah was even trying to wipe his tears away. She was getting ink all over her hand, but she didn’t seem to care.

“Please don’t cry cousin Bendy. Everything is fine now. That monster is gone.” Bendy was surprised she called the slug a monster and not himself. She looked up into his eye and graced him with a soft smile.

“Besides, you saved us!” Beth had a huge smile on her face. “I thought it was gonna get us but you came out of nowhere! You just picked up that slug up and tossed it like a football!”. She threw her hands in the air and laughed. “You are the coolest cousin, ever!” Beth tried to wrap her arms around his face as she pressed her cheek against his own.

“Thank you, cousin Bendy.” Sarah said softly as she leaned in close, wrapping her own arms around his face, and pressing her cheek against his other cheek.

Bendy was shocked. They forgave him? His eye swiveled to look at Henry. Henry gave him a sympathetic smile and a wave of forgiveness through their bond. The toon whined and a sheepish grin spread across his face. He wrapped his massive arms around the little group and picked them up. He hugged them close and nuzzled each one in turn. They forgave him! Even after everything that happened, they forgave him…

“Hey buddy?” Bendy looked at his friend. “We need to get the girls back to the house. They are soaking wet from their little dip in the lake. We need to get them dry and into some warm clothes so they don’t catch a cold.” That's when Bendy noticed how cold their hands felt, how wet their clothes felt, or how they shivered slightly.

The toon demon huffed and carried the group through the forest. Henry tried to protest, saying that they could all walk, but Bendy would have none of that. He could get them to the house faster this way and it was the least he could do for chasing them out here in the first place.

“Umm, uncle Henry?” Sarah looked a little uneasy so he asked her what was wrong. “D-Do we have to tell mom about this?”

Bendy froze on the spot. He forgot about June! Oh, she was going to be so angry with him.  He whined softly and looked down at Henry.

“Yes, we are going to tell your mother what happened tonight.” Henry watched as both girls curled up against Bendy's chest. The look on the faces told him they weren’t looking forward to that.

“And bud, don’t worry. We're gonna talk to her. She'll get angry, but she'll understand. Trust me.”

Bendy stared at Henry for a few moments. His entire body relaxed and he had a soft smile on his face. He continued on his way to the house. He thought back to what the slug said and realized it was wrong. He trusted Henry. He knew that no matter what happened, they would face it, together.

 

 The End

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's done! This is the end of this little tale. I hope you all enjoyed it and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

**Author's Note:**

> I would like to get the finished story up before the end of this month but we'll see. You'll understand why as you read it ;) Enjoy everyone!


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